Holly MatkinKansas City, MO – A generous Kansas City police officer went above and beyond the call of duty in order to bring a smile to the face of a little boy she met during a shooting investigation.
Earlier this month, 25-year-old Kansas City Police Officer Ashley Wilson crossed paths with 12-year-old Noah, after he witnessed a nonfatal shooting from his apartment window, she told Blue Lives Matter on Tuesday.
“I was talking with him on scene and he was telling me all about his dreams of being an FBI agent,” Officer Wilson recounted.
“He was so eager to help and to be a vital piece of the investigation,” she later wrote in a Facebook post. “He’s an incredible kid.”
As they chatted, Noah noted that the weather was perfect for him to be out riding his bike, but that someone had stolen it from his family’s front porch, so he couldn’t ride anymore, Officer Wilson told Blue Lives Matter.
“He told me all about how cool it was, and I could see the disappointment on his face,” Officer Wilson said.
When she and her partner, Officer Millie Gray, went on shift on Feb. 20, Officer Wilson told her they had a special stop to make.
“My partner told me when I got in the patrol car today, that we had an important errand to run,” Officer Gray wrote in a Facebook post. “She came to work prepared to buy him a brand new one!!!!!”
After they picked out the perfect set of wheels at a local Walmart store, the officers made their way over to Noah’s house to unveil his big surprise.
“He was ecstatic!” Officer Wilson told Blue Lives Matter. “The look [on his face] was priceless, and it made my heart so happy!”
“When we delivered it, he kept pinching his little arm and saying, ‘Is this really happening?!?!’” Officer Gray wrote in her post.
“The joy in his eyes spoke volumes,” Officer Wilson wrote. “He’s going to change the world someday. I’m happy I was able to give such a truly priceless gift. The gift of selflessness.”
And it wasn’t just the officers and Noah who were left grinning that day. The little boy’s family was stunned when they learned about the officer’s generous gift.
“They were pretty speechless but you could tell they were super appreciative,” Officer Wilson told Blue Lives Matter. “They thanked us a million times and couldn’t stop smiling.”
She said that she has received an outpouring of support from her colleagues, and that she and Officer Gray have decided to continue looking for ways to help special people they encounter in the line of duty.
“[Officer] Gray and I have decided through each month of our calls for service, we are going to find a couple children or adults [who] we can do something for,” she explained. “The month of March we have an Easter plan! So, March will be full of small gifts, as well as a couple big ones.”
Some members of the community have even offered to donate items for the officers’ outreach project, and Officer Wilson said she plans to solicit the help of a social worker employed by the department to possibly access additional resources.
“But for now, its just [Officer Gray] and I, changing the community’s views on officers one child at a time!” she told Blue Lives Matter.
Officer Wilson said that she and Officer Gray haven’t been able to meet up with Noah since they dropped off his new bike, but that that they are hoping to get to see him on Tuesday to bring him a shirt from the agency’s media department.